Curtain-fixture.



E. E. WHITMORE.

CURTAIN FIXTURE. APPLICATION IILED AUG. 5, i909.

Patented Alig. 20, 1912.

I F I I/IA'I/II "UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD E. WHI'IMORE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO THE CURTAIN SUPPLY COMPANY, OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

CURTAIN-FIXTURE.

Specification of Letters Iatent.

Patented'Aug. 20, 1912.

' carried by the curtain stick provided at the bottom of the curtain. In the present instance I aim to supplyat each side of the curtain an anti-friction outwardly springpressed head which is intended and adapted to travel at all times freely and easily in the guiding grooves of the window casing or side posts. In conjunction with such easily movable heads I employ friction or holding" means to co-act with the bottoms of such guiding grooves, whereby to hold the curtains, down in operative adjusted position. These friction members are connected at the center of the curtain stick with finger knobs or clasps which are adapted to retract them, whereby to render them temporarily inoperative as holding means, and when thus held back the curtain is free to move to the desired position, the ant-ifriction-shoes or heads at all times remaining in the grooves, and because of their elongated character tending to hold the curtain stick in proper righted horizontal position.

In the accompanying drawing, which forms a part of this specification, I have shown a desirable embodiment of this invention, and in this drawingFigure 1 issimilar to Fig. 3 of a still further modified construction.

In this particular embodiment of the invention the curtain 10 is mounted on a spring-actuated roller 11 which exerts a constant tendency to wind or roll up the curtain thereon, and at its lower end the curtain has extended therethrough a tubular stick 12 having inserted in its central portion a short inner tube 13, the latter in turn having fixed in its center a stationary block 14. At each end of such tubular stick I provide a hollow sheet-metal head 13* of substantial length transversely of such stick, the head being suitably fixed to a cylindrical barrel or stem 14: fitted and slidable in the end of such stick. The elongated head, as stated above, is made of sheet-metal and is composed of two side members 15 connected at theirbacks by a portion 16 which in the present instance is apertured for the reception of the outer end of the barrelor stem 14*, the part protruding through such hole into the interior of the head being riveted to the latter at 17 and 18. At each end the head 13" carries a revoluble anti-friction roller 19 Inount ed thereon for rotation in any suitable and convenient manner. The heads and rollers are adapted to fit and travel in the grooves 20 formed on the inner faces of the side posts 21 of the window casing, the heads being partially received within such grooves, as is clearly indicated. In order topress outwardly these heads and associatedrollers each end of the hollow stick is supplied with a coil expansion spring 20, the outer end of which bears against the corresponding barrel or stem 14, while its inner end bears against a perforated washer 21 held against inward movement in the stick by indentations 22 in the latter. It will, therefore, be

pansive character of such sprin s, the normal tendency is for these anti-friction heads to be held in such position that all of the rollers 19 contact and engage with the bottoms of the guiding grooves 20.

To supply means for holding the curtain in adjusted position, I rovide the followin inst-rumentalities: Eac h head. has pivoted therein between its two sides 15 on a ful-' cru'm pin 23 a cam 24., the outer face of which is adapted to be pressed into frictional engagement with the bottom of the groove 20 to constitute a frictional holding means to maintain the curtain inthe desired position. In normal condition, as is indicated in Fig. 2, a portion of the cam protrudes out of the head 13 so as to bear against the bottom of the groove. 'At its upper bifurcated end this cam is slotted at 2!} for the accommodation of a-connecting pin 26 which protrudes into such slot and through the reduced end of a rod 27 passing axially through a central opening 28 in the barrel or stem 14 and'also through the central hole of the washer 21. Approximately midway of its length such rod is equipped with a washer 29 fitted and prevented. from,

outward'movement' thereon by the enlargement 30 of the rod, such washer, through the central hole of which the rodpasses, acting as an abutment against which the outer end of'the'co-il expansionspring 31 may press, the inner end of such s ring bear ing against the adjacent end of the inner tube 13. To the inner end of each rod 27 I fasten the shank- 32 of a finger piece 33,

the main body of which is disposed outsideof the stick and curtain, having aortion projecting through a slot into the interior thereof.

tional engagement between thecams and the bottoms of the grooves to prevent movement of the curtain in either direction. In order to adjust the height of the curtain to that which may be desired, the operator ordinarily grasps the two finger pieces 33, pressing the same together, thereby drawing'inwardly the pair'of rods 27 against the action of the two springs '31, and rocking the two cams 24: away from the bottoms of thegrooves into the dotted line position shown in Fig. 2. This action on the partof the operator withdraws the holding friction and permits thexcurtain to be'raised and low- -ered,':.the' anti-frictionelongated 'Theads.

- readily and easilytraveling'int thegguiding grooves and acting, because of their elon-.

gated character, "to maintain the curtain 'stick'in righted condition. (It should be 0b- 155 served that. when the curtain is released in this manner the operation and retraction "of the cams in. no way influences the. cooperative relation between the anti-friction heads and the guiding grooves, and: it'should be further noticed that. even if the stickis {considerably tilted o-r inclined; du'e" toim'prop'er a manipulation owing to the yielding character of the springs 20 "the"heads'will're main part-lyfin the groovesand prevent displacement or dislodgment' of the curtain stick. After the curtain has been brought to the. desired height theoperator releases the pincers or' finger pieces 33, and the cams under the action of the springs may rock on their pivots so as to again operatively, and frictionally engage the bottoms of the grooves to hold the curtain in adjusted position.

If it be attempted to raise the curtain by pushing up the stick without pinching the handles togetherthe cams will sometimes hold so firmly to the bottoms of the grooves that they will'be rotated on-their pivot pins of the slots 25, the heads being forced back slightly by the pressure exerted thereupon by the cams'through the pins 23. Further turning movement of the cams being now impossible, the cams will slide along the bottoms of the grooves and the curtainwill be permitted to move upward without injury to the holding device. If upward pressure be applied tothe stick by the hand of theoperator near one'end," the lower end of the head at the'other end ofthe stick will be only slightly withdrawn from the groove before the device will right itself, for j the reason that thecam of this head can extend out. beyond its normal position but slightly,

owing to the fact that the pin '26 'reaches 23 until the pins 26 occupy the upper ends theend of the slot 25 before the cam has turned on itspivot to anyconsiderable e e I tent. The practical advantage of this selfright-ing feature in' a device of this kind is Well understood to those skilled in this art.

The modified construction of Fig. '3 is substantially like that of Fig. 2, except that the head 34 is made integral with its barrel or shank 35 and the aperture 36 extended through the latter is somewhat larger than the corresponding aperture inthe construction of Figs. 1 and 2 to permit a slight lat eral movement of the rod 27 which in this instance is directly pivoted at 37 to the top end of a curved cam 38 pivoted to the head at 39o Inasmuch as the operation oft-his cam is substantially like that of the one described above, further-description of the the rod 27 moves sidewiseto an extent and that the larger hole 36 is provided for-this reason; In this style of device it is evident that the amount of throw of the'cam 38 is determined by the degree" of lateral play permitted by the rod 27 in the stem '36. 'Instead of making the pin andslot conif'nection between the rod 27 and the cam,the iformer maybe directl "pivoted as at 40' '(Fig. 5)' to the top en of a=ca1n which is' connected to the anti-friction head' 13 by means of a pin 41 rigid with the latter and passing through a-'slot 42' of the cam. fjObviously, then; as the rod 27 is shifted the cam ,s'am'e appears to be unnecessary, it "being sufficient to state that because ofthe lack of the provision of the pin and slot connection not only rocks on its pivot pin 41 but also slides somewhat over the same, as I have indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 5. The action of thiscam, however, is practically the .same as the others described, the amount of throw being determined by the length of the slot 42.

These are only a few of a' considerable number of embodiments of which this invention is susceptible, and I do not, therefore, wish to be limited to any of these exact constructions, since many minor mechanical changes in the same will occur to those skilled in this art, and the incorporation of such changes in structures of this character would not constitute a departure from the heart and essence of this invention.

I claim:

1. In a curtain fixture, the combination of a curtain stick, anti-friction heads mounted on said stick and adapted to travel in the guiding grooves of a window or other casing, spring means to press said anti-friction heads outwardly into said grooves, inde pendent spring-pressed friction cams pivoted on said heads and adapted to hold the curtain from movement by pressure against the bottoms of said grooves, retracting means for said cams to render the same temporarily inoperative, thereby permitting adjustment of said curtain and the free travel of said heads in. said grooves, and means for limitin the movement of said cams relatively to its head, substantially as described.

2. In a curtain fixture, the combination of a curtain stick, a head mounted in the end of said stick and movable therein, anti-friction rollers on said head, spring means for pressing said head outwardly into a groove in the casing, a cam pivoted to said head, a rod within said curtain stick and having slotted engagement with said cam, spring means for pressing said cam outwardly into said groove, thereby preventing vertical movement of said curtain stick, and means for retracting said rod and thereby withdrawing said cam'from its engagement with stick, anti-friction means carried by the head above and below the plane of the stick, a cam pivoted in said head, a rod'connected to said cam and extending into the stick, a spring for urging said rod outwardly, means for limiting-the movement of said'rod ,with respect to the'head, and means for retracting said rod to withdraw said cam from holding engagement with the window frame.

5. In a curtain fixture, the combination of a stick, a spring pressed head having antifriction means above and below the stick, a holding cam mounted in said head, spring means for revolving said cam outward, and means for limiting the movement of said cam with respect to said head.

6. In a curtain fixture, the combination of a curtain stick a spring ressed head carried by the stick, antifriction means carried by the head and located above and below the plane of the stick, a rod confined to longitudinal movement within the stick, a spring pressing said rod outwardly, a cam pivoted to the end of the stick and to the head, said cam having a slotted connection with one of its pivots, and means for retracting said rod to withdraw said cam from holding engagement with the window frame, substantially as described.

EDWARD E. WHITMORE.

Witnesses:

WALTER M. FULLER, M. A; KIDDIE. 

